Peranakan Cuisine / Nyonya Food in Melaka

Photo Credit: Facebook @ Our Kitchen Nyonya Restaurant 

Peranakan cuisine or Nyonya cuisine comes from the Peranakans, descendants of early Chinese migrants who settled in Penang, Malacca, Singapore and Indonesia, inter-marrying with local Malays. In Baba Malay, a female Peranakan is known as a nonya (also spelt nyonya), and a male Peranakan is known as a baba. The cuisine combines Chinese, Malay, Javanese, South Indian, and other influences.

Nyonya cooking is the result of blending Chinese ingredients with various distinct spices and cooking techniques used by the Malay/Indonesian community. This gives rise to Peranakan interpretations of Malay/Indonesian food, similarly tangy, aromatic, spicy and herbal. In other instances, the Peranakans have adopted Malay cuisine as part of their taste palate, such as Assam fish and beef rendang. Key ingredients include coconut milk, galangal (a subtle, mustard-scented rhizome similar to ginger), candlenuts as both a flavouring and thickening agent, laksa leaf, pandan leaves (Pandanus amaryllifolius), belachan, tamarind juice, lemongrass, torch ginger bud, jicama, fragrant kaffir lime leaf, and cincalok – a powerfully flavoured, sour and salty shrimp-based condiment that is typically mixed with lime juice, chillies and shallots and eaten with rice and other side dishes.

There are regional variations in Nyonya cooking. Dishes from the island of Penang in the northern part of Peninsular Malaysia possess Thai influences, such as more liberal use of tamarind and other sour ingredients. Dishes from Singapore and Malacca show a greater Indonesian influence, such as the use of coconut milk. A classic example is a laksa (a spicy noodle soup), which comes in two variants: the sour Asam laksa from Penang and the coconut milk-based laksa lemak from Singapore and the southern regions of Peninsular Malaysia.


Photo Credit: Facebook @ Nancy's Kitchen

Melaka is popular with Nyonya Cuisine with Malay and Indonesian influences, the few famous Nyonya Cuisine in Melaka such 1. Nyonya Laksa 2. Nyonya Beef / Chicken Rendang 3. Belacan Lady’s Finger 4. Sambal Petai Prawn 5. Pai Tee (Top Hat) 6. Lemak Nanas etc. 

Melaka is one of the cities popular with Peranakan cuisine in Malaysia. We must try the Nyonya food when we visit Melaka. The famous Nyonya Restaurant in Melaka is as the following.

  1. Peranakan Mansion
  2. Nancy’s Kitchen
  3. Restoran Nyonya Makko
  4. Cottage Spices Nyonya
  5. Restoran Aunty Lee
  6. Amy Heritage Nyonya Cuisine
  7. Restoran Ole Sayang
  8. Wild Coriander
  9. Siew Tin’s Nyonya Kitchen
  10. Atlantic Nyonya Restaurant
Please visit Nyonya Restaurants in Melaka for more information.

Location: Malacca, Malaysia

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